Police Blotter: Home Break-In Ends in Arrests

The police arrested three men early Nov. 2 shortly after 1:30 a.m. for breaking into a neighbor's apartment in the middle of the night and stealing a television and a purse containing credit cards and cash.

The arrest came a short time after responding officers arrived at the home of the 88-year-old victim, who was still sleeping and unaware anyone had broken in.

The officers found her curtains blowing in the wind through a broken window, through which a brick had been thrown. The woman told officers her television was missing.

A witness told police the thieves had run in a particular direction and while a canine officer was searching a neighboring apartment, the officer found the three men, one of whom immediately admitted involvement. Officers also found the television and the woman's purse. The men, two ages 20 and another age 19, were initially arrested but only one was formally charged in the crime. The men were hiding in various locations throughout the apartment. Two of them lived in the apartment and the other one is a resident of Detroit, according to a report. The Detroit man has been charged with felony counts of home invasion and receiving stolen property. He is schedule to appear in court for his preliminary exam Nov. 17.

Suspended Student Arrested for Trespassing

police arrested a 16-year-old student Nov. 2 for trespassing after she repeatedly refused to leave the school. The teen was suspended from school for consuming alcohol and her mother was called to pick her up. She refused to leave with her mother, who eventually left the school herself. Staff told the teen if she did not comply, she would be charged with trespassing, but she still refused to leave so they called police. She resisted an officer who was attempting to get her to leave, knocking him to the floor and eventually requiring another officer to respond to assist the original responding officer. She refused to remove her backpack, which had to be cut off of her, and the officers had to carry her out of the school and force her into the back of a squad car.

Parent Reports Fight, Bullying

The mother of a student reported a fight between her son and another student Monday to police. The woman told officers her son has had problems with this other student, who is 15 years old, for about a year. Her son told police that shortly after 3 p.m. while walking in the hallway, he was approached by some of the other student's friends, who told him their friend could beat him up. Then both students began cursing at each other. The other student threw down his backpack and got into a fighting stance, spurring the other to do the same. The teenager told police he threw the first punch in an effort to defend himself but did not strike the other teenager. His mother told police both teens received five-day suspensions from school and that there were several witnesses to the event. She also told police that the boy who instigated the fight has bullied and harassed her son for about one year. The boy's eye had a small cut on it and bruising, according to a report.

Traffic Stop Leads to Border Patrol Arrest

police turned a 38-year-old Albanian man over to U.S. Border Patrol early Monday after he nearly struck a patrol officer's car on Mack Avenue. The man was driving on Mack Avenue and did not attempt to change lanes or move over at all for the patrol car, which was legally parked and with the hazard lights on. The officer had to move the patrol car out of the way to avoid being struck by the driver of the other car. After it passed, the officer noticed the vehicle also had an obstructed view and performed a traffic stop. The man gave officers an international driver's license and other paperwork but his answers to the officer did not match some of the physical descriptors included on the documents, spurring the officer to call Border Patrol. The border patrol officers determined the man was in the country illegally and took him into custody. The vehicle he was driving was impounded and all of his personal belongings were given to Border Patrol, according to a report.

Attempted Home Break-In

The City of Grosse Pointe is also investigating an attempted break-in of a home in the 600 block of Neff Road reported by the resident Nov. 1 after a neighbor informed her of the would-be crime. The resident told officers she had several pieces of jewelry stolen from her home in early October and she believes her home might be a target of her son's friends. The 22-year-old suspect, as identified by the neighbor, is a friend of her son's, who has moved up north, according to the report.

Woods Resident Reports Toilet-Papering

A 48-year-old Grosse Pointe Woods man reported to police that his home has been repeatedly toilet-papered by friends of his son. He told police he believes the toilet-papering is harassment to his family as it has happened three to four times in the last six months. He requested police to investigate, according to a report.

Youth Detective Investigates Fight

Grosse Pointe Woods police are investigating a schoolyard fight between two sixth-graders after one boy's parents called to report it, saying the other boy has been harassing their son. The boys fought behind Barnes Early Childhood Center Nov. 3 and a responding officer watched video of the encounter, during which he said one boy threw three punches to the other boy's face and the boy whose parents called police did not throw any punches. Two other boys who came to the playground with the boy accused of harassing the other boy videotaped it on their cell phones. The case was given to the department's youth officer for further investigation, according to a report.

Teen Reports Another's Attempt to Fight Her

A 14-year-old girl called Grosse Pointe Woods police Nov. 3 after being confronted by a 13-year-old student who wanted to fight her outside of the library. The pair had been involved in a fight several weeks ago and were advised to stay away from each other and avoid contact. The elder teenager told the officer she was walking to the library from Grosse Pointe North High School when she was confronted by the other girl, who was backed up by a large group of girls gathered behind her. She was able to avoid the other teen and the group, make her way into the library and then she went home after they left and called police, according to a report.

Burglar Steals Cash, Ring

Grosse Pointe Woods police are investigating the theft of $240 cash and a class ring from a home in the 19700 block of Ida Lane. A resident arrived home Oct. 25 about 1 p.m. to find a broken window, a tipped over computer and the missing items. A housekeeper had been working at the house until about 11:40 a.m. that morning and told officers all was in order when she left. Officers took pictures of several muddy footprints tracked through the house and were able to pull a few fingerprints from the broken window area as well as from the drawer from where the cash was taken, according to a report.

Drunken Driving Arrests

Grosse Pointe Farms police arrested a 21-year-old Detroit woman for drunk driving after stopping her near Chalfonte and Champine for having a defective headlight and non-working taillights. The officer began following to initiate a traffic stop for the defective headlight and when he approached, the woman smelled of alcohol. She told the officer she was driving home to a particular area but already passed the street. The woman failed field sobriety tests that were administered by the officer and had a 0.13 percent blood alcohol level. She admitted drinking Hennessy, according to a report.

Grosse Pointe Farms police arrested a 68-year-old resident Nov. 1 for drunken driving after he drove onto the grass near Ridgemont and Chalfonte. Officers received a 911 call about a possible drunk driver and a responding officer spotted the man backing off a grassy area at the intersection. The man smelled of alcohol, was unsteady on his feet and failed several field sobriety tests administered. He had a 0.22 percent blood alcohol content and was charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated, according to a report.